The Sting
by At My Most Beautiful
Summary: Future fic - who is Ryan Atwood?  Berkeley, the Cohens, and the strange mystery that must be solved.


The Sting

_So, I've just been re-watching ancient episodes of the OC – complete nostalgia for when it was actually on. And then I wanted to read stuff, but realized there was a low supply of what I wanted: namely, feel-good stories about Ryan and the Cohens after the end of the series. So in a complete rush today I came up with this to contribute to the gap. Enjoy! And please, review to let me know what you think!_

Madison Carew knew people. And, as she stared, eyes narrowed, at _that kid_ – Ryan Atwood – she knew _exactly_ who he was.

He wasn't one of the right sort of people. There was something about him. His silence? His spare movements? His unwillingness to talk about his family? Definitely, something was off. And she would find out exactly what. He looked dangerous, and Madison didn't like dangerous people. Plus, finding out his secret might be her chance to increase her exposure: what was the point of going to college if you weren't popular?

…

"Hey Kirsten," Ryan muttered quietly as he drew away from his first-year study group. "Just give me a minute to get somewhere more private, ok?" He smiled distractedly at the group as he gestured vaguely toward the doors of the library, turned, and headed off.

"Sophie did what? Is Sandy ..." Madison heard, before he was too far away to hear the conversation.

Excellent. Now she had something to start with. She turned to another member of her study group.

"Who's Kirsten? Is it Ryan's girlfriend?"

The plain, dumpy girl next to her looked pleased to be spoken to by someone like Madison. God, the horror of being assigned to random study groups!

"I don't think so." The girl sounded uncertain. "I think he's not dating anyone right now? But I don't really know. I mean, we've only been in the class for six weeks, and he doesn't really talk about that sort of thing, does he?" She paused. "There's something interesting about him, though, don't you think? A friend of mine knows his roommate, and he says that there're pictures of people – you know, like friends and stuff – but he doesn't have any family pictures up. And he gets lots of calls, like, from all over the country, but not from his parents."

Madison realised, as the girl (Alice? Amanda? Ariel?) kept droning on, that it wasn't just her who was intrigued by _that boy_. Who _was _Ryan Atwood?

…

Outside, Ryan was trying to end his call with Kirsten. She seemed a little clingy now – which was weird given that she had Sophie to occupy her, and he visited the Cohens at least two or three times a week for dinner or to sit Sophie while they went out. But, of course, she wasn't used to him and Seth living away from home.

"Kirsten, I really need to head back. I'm supposed to be with my Econ study group. Can I call you later?"

"Sorry, Ryan! I just really wanted you to know that Sophie's missing you. Make certain you catch up with Sandy today, though – I've given him something to pass on to you."

"No problem. I'll drop by the law buildings after my group. See you Friday?"

"Will do. Love you!" Kirsten ended the call.

Ryan blinked a little. That was new, too. I mean, he knew Kirsten loved him – of course he did. But her easy mention of it in virtually every call was something he was still getting used to. It had become even more common since Sophie was born. Maybe it was the hormones.

He headed back to his study group.

….

Half an hour later, Ryan grabbed the strap of his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. "See you guys next week."

Madison looked at him walking away and figured that this was her opportunity. "Gotta go." Sending an impersonal smile around, she headed off.

As soon as she was out of the library doors, she veered violently, following _that boy _while keeping out of his line of sight. He was heading across campus rather than to the dorms, which Madison thought was sort of weird as he'd mentioned he had no other classes today and was heading off after study group. Maybe this had to do with the phone call. She frowned as she saw him lope up the stairs of the law building.

Surely he was doing something Architecture-y?

…

Madison was pre-law herself. Her daddy was a partner in Burlock, Stein and Holloway in New York, and he expected her to make something of herself. Personally, Madison was holding out for some really cute guy whose dad would get him a cushy job after graduation so that she didn't need to do actual work, like, _ever_. Still, it always paid to keep her options open.

Besides, while she didn't really think law would be her raison d'etre, the professor in her pre-law class was soooo hot. Like, smoking! His name was Professor Cohen, and he couldn't be more than forty, maybe forty-five. He had strong features and dark hair, and really dreamy eyes. She could tell he was married – the wedding ring looked, like, embedded, and he'd occasionally mentioned that he had kids. Boys, she thought, and about the same age as her because he'd mentioned them going off to college.

Still – there was something about an empty nest, Madison thought. Always an opportunity for something of a shake-up. Besides, there's no way a guy as hot as Professor Cohen shouldn't be fully aware that he had, like, _options_. And she hadn't found her cute rich guy yet.

Today, Professor Cohen was telling the class about some weird principle about needing bodies. At least, that's what it sounded like. She didn't really listen to, like, _the words_.

Suddenly, there was a weird ring – it sounded like one of those loser bands, maybe Death Cab for Cutie? An odd ring for a Professor, but whatever. Professor Cohen pulled the phone from his pocket while telling the class to write a sentence about something – Madison wasn't really listening to that. But she was listening as he flipped the phone open and headed toward the door, passing right by her at the end of the front row.

"Hey, Seth. I'm in class at the moment – is this urgent? ... Ryan said what? You boys – you really need to think ..."

Must be one of his kids. Probably explained the loser ring. Any kid called Seth Cohen had to be a complete geek. Although, if his other kid was called Ryan that might be even worse. Less of a geek name, but it didn't really work. Ryan Cohen. Sounded like some kind of lame-ass attempt at a rhyme.

…..

It was study group time again, and Madison still hadn't quite figured out what was going on with the Atwood kid. She knew there was something off. In the past week she'd learnt several things:

That girl had been right about the lack of parental unit representation in his dorm room. (Madison had slipped his roommate a fifty to inspect his stuff.) There were a few photos of him and some kid his age with curly dark hair – kind of cute but really geeky. Some of the photos had girls in them - one really cute tiny girl and another tall skinny girl with big teeth. And another girl with really straight honey-coloured hair. There were a few more photos of him with the big-tooth girl, or of her alone, so maybe she was a girlfriend?

Despite the lack of parental photos, he had a lot of expensive stuff. Like, high-end designer guys clothing and shoes, and a top-of-the line laptop and CD player. So there had to be money coming from somewhere. He liked dark colours and had an excessive number of wifebeaters.

He _did_ get a lot of phone calls. They seemed to come from all over. Her inspection of his cellphone (which she had "borrowed" to call a cab when her car, like, "broke down") suggested the OC (although he clearly couldn't be from somewhere that well-off), Providence, and a whole heap of local calls. Which was weird, because most kids at college didn't really get local calls unless they were from the area and had pushy parentals. And clearly neither of those things were true of Ryan Atwood.

He was pretty smart. His teachers had all been complimentary when she'd called them to ask for, like, academic references to support his application for a research job.

Plus, there'd been a really strange call when she was in his room. It had gone to voicemail, but she'd heard it. It had said (and she remembered this, like, _word-for-word_, because it was so weird):

"_Hey Ryan ... Ryyyaan? You there man. Pick up, pick up, pick up? Okay, so, you're not there. But I'm gonna tell you anyway because I've got cool news and you are going to regret not being there to pick up my call. You're gonna be all, like, man, I really missed Seth's call? Seth's fifth call in a week? I must be missing out on all the important stuff! But, dude, you totally are. And now I'm not gonna tell you, except that it's about Summer (and no, man, I can hear you already, but you're completely wrong, not everything I talk to you about is Summer-related). And also, this really cool thing about the whales. Or nuclear power. One or the other. Or, like, polar bears? Maybe I should tell Summer to call and explain. Anyway, sorry I missed you man. Catch you next time. Oh – and before I hang up: Mom called me about the thing for Sophie, and it sounds cool. So I guess I'll see you soon."_

She figured Seth must be the other kid in the photos. His brother, it sounded like. There was something niggling about that fact, but Madison couldn't remember what it was. And then she got a headache. No point thinking too hard about things. It probably wasn't important.

…..

Today, study group went as normal. They talked, Madison wanted to nap, it ended. Afterward, Atwood gave a quick wave and goodbye and was out.

Madison followed again but this time he wasn't heading toward the law buildings. Instead he hurried (which seemed out of character – she couldn't remember him moving fast much at all) toward the parking lot to grab his car. But on the way he stopped when his phone rang. Madison hid behind a column as he paused to talk.

"Mom ... I didn't expect ... Trey? ... no, I haven't ... no, I know I'm lucky to have got out of juvie like that ... not since he got out ... my _brother_? ... I can't talk anymore ... no, Mom ... no ... goodbye." He hung up.

Madison peered round the column. She figured he looked frustrated. Or constipated. They probably both looked about the same on Ryan Atwood. She ducked back behind the column as he glanced around, reaching for his phone again.

"Kirsten, hey ... I need to talk to you and Sandy ... no, it's nothing to worry about ... yes, my classes have finished for the day ... dinner? Sure. 6? ... I'll see you then."

By the time Madison peered round the column again, Atwood was gone. But she had more information, and she know how to use that. Trey? Maybe Ryan's brother (although, wasn't that the Seth kid?). And if this Trey person "got out", and Ryan went to juvie (like, eww!), maybe that meant prison? That was totally google-able.

….

By the next study group session, Madison had learnt several more things. They were:

Trey Atwood totally had been to prison, like, for stealing a car or something. And there had been something weird about a shooting in Newport, but there wasn't much to find about it. Probably some parent had made certain not too much information got to the papers. And then he disappeared.

Newport was in the OC, which meant that there probably was some link with Ryan.

Maybe the guy in the photos was Trey, rather than Seth? But Seth had referred to his mom as if he and Ryan were brothers. Maybe he had two brothers, and was, like, estranged from the criminal one. (Not that he could talk, what with the juvie. But those records weren't available on google.)

What was Berkeley doing letting some dangerous kid with a criminal brother attend their school and endanger their students? Maybe she should, like, take the matter to the faculty?

Today, Atwood seemed distracted. He kept checking the time on his phone and didn't talk as much during group. And afterward he bolted. Madison figured this was the week. Clearly something was happening that he was ashamed of, or embarrassed about, and Madison was going to know exactly what that was. If it, like, _killed_ her.

He was heading to the law buildings again, she thought. This time she wasn't going to go away after he went in, though. She was going to wait and see where he went next. So she crouched, like, almost in a bush! – and waited for him to come out again.

Oooh – the hot Professor was there! And there was someone with him. Madison figured she might get to see her competition. Not that a, like, middle-aged lady could be any real competition for her. She waited for him to get near her bush.

The lady actually was quite pretty, but definitely _old_. Like, almost as old as the Professor. She had great hair, though, and was in pretty good shape for her age. Madison listened to the conversation.

"Sandy, you know we have to get home quickly or we'll be late! Why did you send the boys off to pick up your papers? You could've come back for them later."

"It won't take long, honey. We've got plenty of time to get back to the sitter."

Sitter? Professor Cohen must have another kid as well as the boys.

"Anyway, Sophie will be fine. You know she's too young to even know it is her birthday, let alone that we're celebrating it with her. Just because we want to make it special doesn't mean..." he kept talking, but Madison was a little weirded out. If the kid was that young, Professor Cohen and his wife must still, like, be _doing it_. Eww! Plus, maybe it wasn't quite so ok to go after a guy with a really young kid.

Just then, Professor Cohen turned and gestured to his wife. "See, Kirsten, they're on their way."

Kirsten? Madison's hands slipped where they were gripping the bush, but she recovered and luckily the Professor didn't seem to notice. That name sounded familiar. Why did it sound familiar? She looked in the direction of the entrance to the law building, and realised.

Seth. Ryan. Ryan Atwood was one of Professor Cohen's kids.

She sat there, confused, as the boys headed towards her.

"Mom, Ryan is sooo cool. He's not telling me anything about what's going on. Surely you have the inside scoop? The word on the street? The skinny? The dope?"

"Seth, don't say dope."

Mrs Cohen grabbed her son by his collar, smoothed it down, turned to Ryan. "You ready, kid? You know you're the star attraction for Sophie."

Ryan grinned at Mrs Cohen. "Sure, Kirsten."

This was Ryan's family. He knew it, and he loved the times that they were together. He'd never tell them, of course, but they made him happy, and he liked that he made them happy, too. And he loved them. And while he didn't say it often, he knew what he owed to them, and what he felt for them regardless of any obligation, and he knew that they knew too. And now that he was at Berkeley it felt even more real. He wasn't a kid anymore. They had no obligations toward him. And yet, they'd wanted him close by. They wanted him to visit. They wanted him to be part of their family. They would always want him to be part of their family. Because he already was.

He hadn't put up photos in his room. He didn't call them "Mom" or "Dad". He didn't need to. He knew who they were to him, just as he knew who he was to them, and that was enough. That was all that he needed.

Besides, what kind of guy rubbed it in people's noses that he was related to the academic staff?

…..

Madison's foot cramped as the Cohens were walking away, and she lost her position and fell sideways into the bush. She was tired, and she was confused. But she knew several things:

Professor Cohen really was a fox.

His wife was good-looking, for an old lady, and clearly he still liked her.

Young kids are like, _completely_ not an aphrodisiac.

Ryan Atwood was _so_ lying about his last name.

She couldn't do this anymore. There were, like, grass stains! On the seat of her miniskirt!

There must be some less humiliating way to get popular.

_Fin_

Hope you enjoyed. Please review.


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